This Wasn't a Loss—Minister Fudge Was Such a Generous Man!

At that moment, Fudge glanced at Dumbledore, whose expression beside the hospital bed was a sight to behold, and for the first time, he felt truly vindicated.

Heaven knew how wary he had been of Dumbledore's threat to his position!

After all, this renowned White Wizard was not only immensely powerful but also had students everywhere. If Dumbledore showed even the slightest intention of becoming Minister of Magic, Fudge believed he would be swept from office the very next moment.

Thus, Fudge had always felt tremendous pressure whenever he faced Dumbledore.

But this time, Fudge felt that he had been absolutely brilliant.

He had resolved a political crisis by paying only a tiny price.

Surely, after seeing this, Dumbledore would be deeply wary of his methods and would no longer dare underestimate him.

Then, as if afraid Charle might change his mind, Fudge immediately summoned a Ministry of Magic official responsible for drafting proposals and had a document drawn up on the spot at top speed.

Once Charle had signed his name, Fudge forcefully stamped it with the seal representing the Minister of Magic.

After the seal came down, Fudge let out a long breath, as though a massive boulder pressing on his chest had been moved away.

"Then, dear Charle, get some good rest. Eat whatever you want; there's no need to save money for the Ministry of Magic."

"The Ministry of Magic exists to serve wizards, especially young wizards like you."

"We still have some matters to handle, so see you later, Charle."

Fudge warmly bade Charle farewell before leading his aides out of St. Mungo's Hospital.

The moment they left the ward, his aides could no longer hide their admiration. They were utterly convinced by Fudge.

"Minister, that was brilliant. Absolutely brilliant."

"When I heard Charle say he wanted to make the truth public, I panicked. I had no idea what to do. Only you, Minister, could have thought of such a genius solution."

"Covering food expenses? What an insignificant condition, yet it directly resolved such a major matter. We can even use it for publicity, showing the entire Wizarding World that our Ministry of Magic cares for vulnerable groups."

"Wonderful. Truly wonderful!"

Faced with his aides' flattery, Fudge felt as though he were floating. The corners of his mouth rose like an AK's flying bullet trajectory, impossible to press down.

His aides flattered him in ordinary times as well, but that always carried a hint of exaggeration. How could it compare to this heartfelt praise?

"Nothing special, nothing special. He is just a child, easy enough to handle. The key is understanding people's hearts."

"Dumbledore is impressive, isn't he? Heh heh, but he doesn't understand people's hearts, which is why he can never become Minister of Magic."

Just as Fudge and his aides were leaving St. Mungo's Hospital while boasting away, an owl from the hospital flew out and dropped a bill into Fudge's arms.

Fudge smiled.

"Looks like our Charle couldn't wait to exercise his privilege. He really is a child—he simply can't resist good food."

As he spoke, Fudge opened the envelope, intending to take out the bill and toss it to one of his aides to deal with.

But the next moment, Fudge froze. With a suspicious look, he turned to his aides.

"Can anyone answer a question for me?"

"How many copies are St. Mungo's Hospital bills issued in now?"

"Why is this bill over a dozen pages long? Don't tell me they charge for Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans one bean at a time!"

All at once, an ominous feeling rose in Fudge's heart.

He hurriedly examined the bill's details, then went completely blank.

"St. Mungo's Hospital magical-power recovery meals, large portions, twenty in total."

"Rapid recovery meals for bruises and injuries, twenty in total."

"One hundred Chocolate Frogs."

"..."

"Damn it, he even ordered fifty bags of Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans?"

"Is Charle planning to open a convenience store?!"

Fudge abruptly turned toward the aide he had summoned to draft the Magical Agreement, his expression turning unpleasant as he asked, "When you drafted the agreement, did you clearly state that it only applied when Charle himself consumed the food?"

"Packing it up and reselling it aren't reimbursed by the Ministry of Magic. Did you make that clear?"

The aide swallowed hard and nodded repeatedly.

"I wrote it! I swear I wrote it! I didn't leave Charle any loopholes to exploit!"

Fudge stood dumbfounded for a long while.

"Then what does this mean? Are you saying Charle ate all of this by himself?!"

"Fuck, has Hufflepuff come back to life in him?!"

After standing there in a daze for a long time, Fudge finally recovered from his utter disbelief. He forced out a smile, comforting both himself and his aides.

"Forget it, forget it. Having a big appetite isn't such a big deal. The Ministry of Magic can afford this much."

"At least Charle is eating normal food. It's not like he's eating precious magical materials, Potions, and the like as meals. We can still afford to support that."

"This deal... wasn't a loss. It wasn't a loss, all right."

Fudge and his aides departed amid repeated cries of "wasn't a loss."

Inside St. Mungo's Hospital, Dumbledore was holding something like a dessert-sharing party with Charle.

Upon seeing Charle's astonishing appetite and the way he seemed willing to eat anything without any dietary restrictions, Dumbledore, who had always enjoyed strange sweets, could not help bringing out his personal collection.

Among them, the Cockroach Clusters—candies that looked like cockroaches and burst with juice—were what Dumbledore most enthusiastically recommended.

To his delight, Charle showed an excited expression before these sweets, which nearly every staff member usually avoided like the plague, popping them into his mouth one after another.

It gave Dumbledore an unexpected sense of having found a kindred spirit.

Charle, meanwhile, was practically overjoyed.

The meals, desserts, and snacks of the Wizarding World really provided quite a few Deduction Points.

At the very least, dozens of times more than ordinary food!

Charle estimated that if he ate like this every meal, he could gain three or four hundred Deduction Points a day.

That would be over ten thousand a month—more than the total of the past ten years!

And that was only ordinary Wizarding World food. If Charle ate some stranger things, such as Magical Creatures containing large amounts of magical power, certain Alchemical Items, Potions, and the like, the points he gained would increase dramatically.

Of course, if he ate like this, Charle's little savings would not last long at all.

Moreover, purchases in the Wizarding World required Wizarding World currency. Muggle currency could be exchanged for Wizarding World currency, but there was an annual limit.

In the original story, Hermione's father was a dentist, and her family was quite well-off. There was no way Hermione lacked pocket money.

Yet Hermione still had to painstakingly save up whenever she wanted to buy something.

With Charle eating like this, the few Galleons he could exchange each year under the limit would not even be enough to fill the gaps between his teeth.

But Minister Fudge, so kind and generous, had signed such an agreement with Charle, completely removing all his worries.

At that thought, Charle's impression of Fudge was thoroughly refreshed.

What Death Eater infiltrator? What Death Eater without a Dark Mark? What key contributor to Voldemort's return...

I, Charle, will not allow you to slander Minister Fudge like that.

Minister Fudge truly was a great and generous man!